Fitchburg council approves City Hall study

Fitchburg City Hall at 718 Main St. has been vacant since a beam cracked in 2012. City offices are now located at 166 Boulder Drive. SENTINEL & ENTERPRISE FILE PHOTO

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FITCHBURG -- In a decision some councilors say is the first step to moving city offices out of 166 Boulder Drive, the City Council last week approved a $90,000 study on the future of City Hall at 718 Main St., which has been vacant for five years.

The 10-1 vote allows the city to commission a feasibility study to assess the options, such as renovation or demolition, for City Hall, which has been vacant since a beam cracked in 2012.

"It's going to provide me with options," Mayor Stephen DiNatale said.

Worcester-based Lamoureaux Pagano & Associates will study both the building and surrounding areas to determine parking options, where departments should be located, square-footage requirements and the cost of any project.

DiNatale said the city is discussing with Bank of America the possibility of the bank's gifting its property at 700 Main St. to the city. He said the city is also looking at a building behind the bank that together with the other buildings could form a "campus-style" City Hall.

Lamoureaux Pagano & Associates was one of eight applicants to respond to a bid put out by the city in December, said Mary Delaney, the city's chief procurement officer.

"They have a great background, and I think they'll have a great product for us," Delaney said at a Finance Committee meeting last month.

DiNatale said the study could not be done internally, because he does not have an architectural engineer and other specialty employees that can complete the work.

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"This is what (Lamoureaux Pagano & Associates) does," he said. "This is how they make their living. ... You're going to sit there and say, 'That's kind of neat. I haven't thought of that.' "

In 2003, the city conducted a similar study that identified the building's general disrepair and inaccessibility. A.J. Tourigny, DiNatale's chief of staff, called that study "severely outdated" at a Finance Committee meeting last month.

A subcommittee that discussed the building's options in 2012 recommended preserving City Hall and keeping in its current location.

"We met several times, and finally our conclusion was we didn't want City Hall torn down," said Ward 3 Councilor Joel Kaddy, who served on the subcommittee.

DiNatale said though the previous assessments of City Hall did not result in large-scale renovations, he plans to act on the feasibilty study's results, which will be returned in August at the latest.

"I'm committed to acting upon the recommendations of the feasibility study," he said.

He said the city is also forming a City Hall committee made up of people in municipal government, city councilors and residents, especially those with strong backgrounds in construction. This committee will act on the recommendations of the study, he said.

DiNatale said commissioning a study is both the "prudent" and "wise" way to approach the future of City Hall. Councilor-at-large Marcus DiNatale said a study is also a state requirement before any action can be taken on the building.

"We need that in order to go forward and make an informed decision," he said.

Councilor DiNatale said even if the city wanted to stay in the Boulder Drive location, the building would likely need renovations, requiring another study.

"I don't want to stay at the current building," he said.

Councilor-at-large Dean Tran said though the Main Street location isn't a priority, he wants the city to move to a building that can fit all the offices.

"I think having all departments in one building would be ideal," he said.

Councilor-at-large Jeffrey Bean said the study is a "good start" to reach this goal.

Only Ward 6 Councilor Jody Joseph voted against the feasibility study. Joseph did not return a call seeking comment Friday, but at the Finance Committee meeting last month, he called the study a waste.

"I think the only thing I would spend $90,000 for in City Hall is to carry it away in trucks with dynamite," he said. "This is just $90,000 wasted as far as I'm concerned."

Councilor-at-large Thomas Donnelly said when he worked in the building in the 1970s the confusing layout made the building "dysfunctional." Though he isn't in favor of preserving the building in its current state, he would like to see City Hall on Main Street.

Kaddy said he is in favor of redeveloping City Hall, but it's a matter of finding the available funds.

"If the city can't invest in their own property on Main Street and redevelopment, what are we asking the other people who own property on Main Street to do?" he said. "I think the city could take a lead on this."

Ward 4 Councilor Michael Kushmerek agreed.

"We can't sit there and have an abandoned or condemned building sitting on the doorstep of our downtown," he said.

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